Amid criticism of its Y and J class products, CX is to replace both and add a Premium Economy service; the new product, which will enter service in December, but will take up to two years to replace across the fleet, follows criticism of the Economy product, which has a fixed back; although not mentioned in the attached article, the long haul Business Class has also been criticised.

The existing Y class seats on long haul will then be transferred to the short haul A330 and 777 fleets.

Well, the seats will have the desired effect - there will be plenty of personal space for the people who do travel on CX in Y, because it seems that a lot of people will fly with other airlines to avoid the uncomfortable seats.

To be perfectly honest, CX is never one of my first choice airlines - and there are other options we have in comparison to them on the routes they fly.

I flew CX in J in July SYD-HKG-BKK... I actually preferred the shorthaul seats to the narrow, hearingbone longhaul set-up. It was an award ticket and I decided I'd never pay money to sit in the herringbone/coffin.

I did have a question about CX's proposal to install air bags in the Y section due to the hard shell... wouldn't the bags make it difficult to escape the aircraft in the required timeframe?

Quoting eta unknown (Reply 2):I did have a question about CX's proposal to install air bags in the Y section due to the hard shell...

But they will have deflated by that time I would think. However, doesn't this raise cost and complexity issues - and make it more sensible to have more standardised seats?

Look at some cars which have very elaborate airbag systems that sense one, if a person is sitting in the seat, and two, the weight of the person seated, and based on that, may inflate in various different stages (or levels of aggressiveness). Multiply that by a conservative 200 seats, and that's already a potential for drama.

I actually really like the Y product. I am someone who tends not to recline my seat, so on most airlines I end up with less space for most of the flight because the person in front reclines their seat into my space. CX's seats eliminate that problem.

Quoting eta unknown (Reply 6):
Quoting AusA380 (Reply 4):
I wonder what the issue has been for their J product when DL and AC have the same and there doesn't appear to have been the same level of concern?

I'm not 100% certain but I think the CX J class confines are narrower than AC/NZ/VS. I've never experienced those herringbone J class seats... after the CX experience I wouldn't want to.

The airbags- yes, they would be deflated, but could you imagine negotiating yourself around them to get to the aisle?

I have flown in the NZ/VS and CX seats and there is a big difference between the NZ/VS seats and the CX seats. The NZ/VS seats are very comfortable, I prefer them over most standard flat bed business class seats. But after 10 minutes in the CX business class seat I was going nuts. It felt like I had less space than an economy class seat. I could hardly open a newspaper enough to read it. Luckily it was only a MNL-HKG flight. I wouldn't do that again if I had to pay for it.

Quoting B747-4U3 (Reply 5):I actually really like the Y product. I am someone who tends not to recline my seat, so on most airlines I end up with less space for most of the flight because the person in front reclines their seat into my space. CX's seats eliminate that problem.

On an overnight 12 hour flight, most people prefer to recline and acept the intrusion from the seat in front

I think CX are one of those airlines that cannot do anything right as everyone compares them to SQ and so what might be ok for other airlines is completely and profoundly unacceptable for CX. A lot of people love to slate them for coming up short against SQ, which I think is a bit unfair.

Mind you it sounds like they've not done themselves any favours of late!

What do you mean you dont have any bourbon? Do you know how far it is to Houston? What kind of airline is this???

The article mentiones that the seat manufacturer is working with CX to upgrade the cushions of the fixed back seats. Does this mean that the new seats will also have the fixed back, but with better cushions, or is the "cushion upgrade" for the same seats that will now be placed in the a330 fleet?

I like the CX business class seats. You have a lot of privacy (due to the high walls) and I slept very well on my 13h flight from MXP-HKG-MXP. I do however admit that this seat probably only works for people who are on the slim side as it is narrower than the traditional biz class seat. The annoying thing with the herringbone layout is that you can't really look out the window properly but for a flat bed product it is not half bad. After all it's C class and not F. From Europe to HK I think CX has the best biz class (seat, service, lounges etc.) without having to fly a big detour via SIN or the middle east.

I think CX should take this opportunity to bring their product back up to par with SQ.

A decade or so ago the two were fairly equally matched, it seems recently CX has let everything slip between their seats and lounges that aren't really up to par with SQ yet alone some other oneworld airlines.

Quoting B747-4U3 (Reply 5):I actually really like the Y product. I am someone who tends not to recline my seat, so on most airlines I end up with less space for most of the flight because the person in front reclines their seat into my space. CX's seats eliminate that problem.

I like it too in Y...mainly for the fact that i'm 2m tall, and its not so much someone infront reclining into my space....rather crushing my knees! These seats avoid that, plus the shell desing actually allows me to stretch my legs out further under the seat in front. While the seat itself is less comfortable then other airlines, the legroom and no fear of knee crushing is a big bonus!

The J class is typical of the herringbone layout, which im generally not a fan of on any airline as they tend to be narrow, though the seat itself is very comfortable for a lie flat seat.

Quoting AirbusA6 (Reply 8):On an overnight 12 hour flight, most people prefer to recline and acept the intrusion from the seat in front

I disagree. The worst thing that can happen for me is to have some inconsiderate idiot in front of me recline their seat all the way, so that the PTV is right in front of my face, restricting my use of the tray table for reading or for watching movies on my computer.

I've grown to quite like these new seats. I've flown long haul on them (HKG-YVR-HKG), and I've found them acceptably comfortable for Y class. I'm not one to sleep on planes, redeye or not, so perhaps my perception of the seat would be different from other people.

Quoting 747m8te (Reply 15):I like it too in Y...mainly for the fact that i'm 2m tall, and its not so much someone infront reclining into my space....rather crushing my knees! These seats avoid that, plus the shell desing actually allows me to stretch my legs out further under the seat in front. While the seat itself is less comfortable then other airlines, the legroom and no fear of knee crushing is a big bonus!

I'm not 200cm tall, but I do appreciate the extra legroom that a fixed shell offers. If CX are to change their Y seats, I hope it remains a fixed shell with minor improvements to perhaps make it more comfortable. Perhaps an increase in seat pitch from 32in to 33in? If not fixed shell, then hopefully a very limited recline - 15-20 degrees ought to be enough.

I thought CX's seat design with the Steelcase Leap Office Chair-derived "live back" was a good idea for long/ultra-long-houl flights. And the fixed back is a much better idea than those seats that recline into your keecaps.

Didn't CX have a worldwide exclusive on their seat design via B/E Aerospace and Steelcase?

Quoting B747-4U3 (Reply 5):I actually really like the Y product. I am someone who tends not to recline my seat, so on most airlines I end up with less space for most of the flight because the person in front reclines their seat into my space. CX's seats eliminate that problem.

Me too! Absolutely love the idea that the only person capable of taking away my personal space is me. On a 14 hour flight, that's very very important to me.

Quoting CXB77L (Reply 16):I disagree. The worst thing that can happen for me is to have some inconsiderate idiot in front of me recline their seat all the way, so that the PTV is right in front of my face, restricting my use of the tray table for reading or for watching movies on my computer.

Im also not someone that generally sleeps on long haul flights ( I slept for the first time ever on a plane last month DXB-SYD) but i think that the vast majority of people like to try and get some rest on a long sector like that and arrive at least a little prepared to fight off the jet lag, perhaps inconsiderate idiots is a bit harsh?
Being 6' 2" if I don't have my seat reclined I can't get my legs under the seat in front, and as much as I don't like to inconvenience the person behind me, Im gonna recline so that im comfortable. Lets just hope im not sitting in front of you on my next flight

I personally haven't tried the offering from CX although my father did seem to like it quite a lot. From those of you that have tried both, how do they compare to the Y offering on QF's 380? I have flown them a few times, and they are my personal favorite despite only being 31 inch pitch.

On a night flight, would it be fair to say that 2/3 of people are sleeping/dozing? I'm flying to SIN Friday night (my first A380 on SQ), and there's no way I would spend the whole 12 hours awake, especially at the end of a whole day in the UK.

Quoting Kappel (Reply 11):The article mentiones that the seat manufacturer is working with CX to upgrade the cushions of the fixed back seats. Does this mean that the new seats will also have the fixed back, but with better cushions, or is the "cushion upgrade" for the same seats that will now be placed in the a330 fleet?

Reading some reviews, it does seem that the new seats are very unpopular, "backbreaking, thin and hard, very hard, excruciating" are all recent comments!

Quoting LAX888 (Reply 13):I like the CX business class seats. You have a lot of privacy (due to the high walls) and I slept very well on my 13h flight from MXP-HKG-MXP. I do however admit that this seat probably only works for people who are on the slim side as it is narrower than the traditional biz class seat. The annoying thing with the herringbone layout is that you can't really look out the window properly but for a flat bed product it is not half bad. After all it's C class and not F. From Europe to HK I think CX has the best biz class (seat, service, lounges etc.) without having to fly a big detour via SIN or the middle east.

I like CX J for the same reasons and pay with my own money on vacation several times a year. My priority is SLEEP. Otherwise I'd go premium economy on AF and eat and drink just as well. SQ in my opinion is over rated. Service is more than refilling my drink with a smile every 30 sec... And I'm not convinced about their new J.

Quoting Kappel (Reply 22):but it would be nice if the seats are comfortable

While not the most comfortable seats in the world, I have certainly had worse in Y...Give me the hard shell Y seat on the 747-400 over the Y seat I had to endure on their A330 flying HKG-FCO last December!